To celebrate 30 years of Paula Spencer, and the publication day of Roddy Doyle’s new novel, The Women Behind the Door, The IFI and Penguin Random House will screen Episode 4 of Family at 6.15pm on 12th September, at the IFI Cinema in Dublin. Tickets are on sale now.

After the screening, Fintan O’Toole (Irish Times) will host a conversation with Roddy Doyle and Ger Ryan (who played Paula in Family) discussing Paula’s legacy and impact.

We first encountered Paula in 1994 in this innovative tv series about the Spencers, a working-class family from Dublin who are suffering under their alcoholic father Charlo’s tyrannical regime of abuse. Roddy Doyle continued to tell Paula’s story in his novels due to the success of Family, publishing The Woman Who Walked into Doors (1996) and Paula Spencer (2006). With the publication of The Women Behind the Door on 12th September 2024, we will see the third chapter in Paula’s story.

During the panel discussion, Doyle’s new novel will also be discussed, whereby 66-year-old Paula – mother, grandmother, and survivor – struggles to flee from the ghosts of the past.

Tickets cost €20.45 and include a copy of the book, which will be distributed on the night.

You can purchase tickets here.

Roddy Doyle also features in the new issue of Hot Press – discussing The Women Behind The Door, the enduring appeal of The Commitments, and co-writing books with sports icons Roy Keane and Kellie Harrington.